The subject matter of the present invention relates to a novel non-polluting roadway, highway and walkway chemical deicer featuring the discovery of a means to produce coarse particles of the chemical, which are necessary to an economical ice-melting mechanism. At the same time these particles are relatively non-friable and possess unusual crush strength, attributes which are mandatory for an industrial chemical which is to be stored, handled, shipped, and dispensed on a large scale. Hitherto this non-polluting chemical, calcium acetate, was only available as a fine, dusty powder, a form in which it is totally unacceptable as a chemical deicer.
The production of a coarse, hard particle of calcium acetate was found to be far from straightforward. Repeated attempts were unsuccessful in the beginning, until it was learned that such factors as water content, magnesium ion content, and drying conditions were highly critical for the wet-particle precursors to the final product.